- Every chick deserves a mother: one man’s crazy dream for how chickens deserve to be raised.
Follow "A Man and His Hoe" via Email
Sections
- About My Chickens (556)
- Cooking-Roasting Tips (18)
- Happiness (127)
- How Things Grow (507)
- Purchasing Chickens (5)
- Raising Chicks (138)
- Recipes (19)
- Reflections (429)
-
Recent Posts
- First Blush of Fall September 29, 2020
- A Perfect Fall Day September 27, 2020
- Blue Sky to Rain to Shaggy Parasol September 26, 2020
- Six Short Weeks September 24, 2020
- 317 Days for a Miracle September 23, 2020
- We Can Breathe Again September 22, 2020
- You Can’t Help But Be Sad September 13, 2020
- Duck Serenity September 6, 2020
- August is Coming to an End August 28, 2020
- It’s Easier with Another August 21, 2020
- Hottest Day of the Year August 16, 2020
- Morning Surprise August 12, 2020
- After the Rains August 8, 2020
- An August Morning August 2, 2020
- August Evening August 1, 2020
- When You Are Insane July 21, 2020
- Summer Is Here July 18, 2020
- It Blooms, It Dies July 15, 2020
- A Cool Start to Summer July 7, 2020
- Each Flower Has Its Own Strategy June 29, 2020
- Disaster Averted June 19, 2020
- Cool, Wet June June 10, 2020
- The End of May May 31, 2020
- Newer, Bigger, Better May 22, 2020
- Summer in May May 13, 2020
- Apple Blossoms and Magical Shoots May 2, 2020
- Where is Kaku 隠? April 27, 2020
- How Does a Bee Pick a Flower? April 21, 2020
- Dog or Bear? April 18, 2020
- What Sunshine and Warm Air Brings April 5, 2020
- Where Everyone Gathers March 29, 2020
- Enjoy Them Today March 21, 2020
- The Snow Geese Migration Is On March 18, 2020
- The World is Curvy March 7, 2020
- Little Known Connections – Japanese Curry and Vermont March 4, 2020
- Hello Again March 1, 2020
- Edison Chicken Parade 2020 February 24, 2020
- Apple Aged February 15, 2020
- Swan Heaven February 8, 2020
- Winter’s Last Day February 3, 2020
- Take a Shower for Six Months February 2, 2020
- How Does a Trumpeter Swan Wash Its Face? January 26, 2020
- Mystery Solved January 19, 2020
- One Last Wintery Dawn January 18, 2020
- Winter Interlude January 14, 2020
- Worries Away January 11, 2020
- A Mystery Rose January 3, 2020
- An Auspicious Start January 2, 2020
- December Blue and Green December 29, 2019
- Frosty December 28, 2019
Recent Comments
Dana Patrick Good on Blue Sky to Rain to Shaggy Par… amanandhishoe on Every Chick Deserves A Mother theramblingmaiden on Every Chick Deserves A Mother amanandhishoe on Six Short Weeks Mads Norman on Six Short Weeks Archives
- September 2020 (8)
- August 2020 (7)
- July 2020 (4)
- June 2020 (3)
- May 2020 (4)
- April 2020 (4)
- March 2020 (6)
- February 2020 (5)
- January 2020 (7)
- December 2019 (7)
- November 2019 (4)
- October 2019 (7)
- September 2019 (8)
- August 2019 (6)
- July 2019 (6)
- June 2019 (7)
- May 2019 (5)
- April 2019 (9)
- March 2019 (8)
- February 2019 (13)
- January 2019 (15)
- December 2018 (10)
- November 2018 (9)
- October 2018 (13)
- September 2018 (8)
- August 2018 (9)
- July 2018 (8)
- June 2018 (8)
- May 2018 (8)
- April 2018 (10)
- March 2018 (9)
- February 2018 (8)
- January 2018 (9)
- December 2017 (10)
- November 2017 (10)
- October 2017 (17)
- September 2017 (12)
- August 2017 (11)
- July 2017 (8)
- June 2017 (11)
- May 2017 (10)
- April 2017 (12)
- March 2017 (11)
- February 2017 (11)
- January 2017 (15)
- December 2016 (20)
- November 2016 (15)
- October 2016 (14)
- September 2016 (17)
- August 2016 (20)
- July 2016 (20)
- June 2016 (23)
- May 2016 (19)
- April 2016 (19)
- March 2016 (24)
- February 2016 (22)
- January 2016 (24)
- December 2015 (19)
- November 2015 (19)
- October 2015 (24)
- September 2015 (22)
- August 2015 (26)
- July 2015 (26)
- June 2015 (23)
- May 2015 (30)
- April 2015 (35)
- March 2015 (36)
- February 2015 (31)
- January 2015 (35)
- December 2014 (31)
- November 2014 (34)
- October 2014 (37)
- September 2014 (35)
- August 2014 (52)
- July 2014 (54)
- June 2014 (50)
- May 2014 (67)
- April 2014 (55)
- March 2014 (34)
- February 2014 (23)
- January 2014 (33)
- December 2013 (20)
- November 2013 (3)
Tag Archives: Birds
Five Blossoms
Five open blossoms is what it takes for the meteorologists in Japan to proclaim that the cherry blossoms have bloomed in a city. In each city, there is one tree which is declared the reference tree, and when five blossoms … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
First Brood?
Most chickens are hatched in large commercial incubators. Here at a man and his hoe® we do things very differently. Even though it is still cool, spring is in the air. The robins are active, calling for mates. The thimble … Continue reading
Maple or Ina?
It’s easy to tell chickens apart when they are as different as Ina and Maple. But how does one tell chickens apart when they look very similar? Chickens of the same breed have slight variations in their color, shape, size, … Continue reading
Snow Day
We woke up to five inches of fluffy snow. Not the chickens favorite weather. Fortunately, the forecast is for much warmer weather tomorrow and the rest of the week, so the snow will be gone soon. When it’s cold and … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Growing Up Is Hard
Life is full of challenges. Things are always changing. Nothing stays the same. And it’s as true for chicks as it is for us. The Milky Way galaxy we live in is moving at some 1,350,000 miles an hour through … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Surprises Every Day
When you let your chickens run free, you never know what they will do or where they will go. A few days ago I heard a rattling in the shed we use to store hay and straw, and where our … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Never Enough Nests?
It’s not that there aren’t enough nests, it’s that hens want to use the same nest. Some days I’ll go to the coop to check out what all the cackling is about, only to see one hen on a nest, … Continue reading
A Chick Grows Up
Words lack the capability to describe the love and care a mother hen showers on her chicks. You have to see it to understand how important mother hens are to chicks. Born at the end of November, the chick at … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Happiness, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Edible Recycled Chicken Manure
So what happens to chicken manure when it is reincarnated? It turns into edible wonders, like these over wintering onions I pulled this morning. Most chicken farmers get rid of their egg laying hens by the time they have gone … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Staying Warm
These chicks are seven weeks and still have a ways to go before they are independent. Many broiler chicks have already been butchered by the time they are this old, and most only have another week or two before they … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Good Food
Good food makes all the difference in the world. And when it comes to eggs, it’s impossible to produce good eggs by the millions. To produce an egg as round and bright as the sun, a hen needs good food, … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Eggs, Humanely raised chicken
Leave a comment
Japanese Chicken Varieties
The lack of varieties of chickens sold in supermarkets in the US is rather surprising. Some stores make distinctions between organic versus conventional, pastured versus broiler chickens, but rarely do you see a selection of a variety of chicken breeds … Continue reading
Six Week Old Chicks – A Long Way to Go
When you watch these small six week old chicks running around with their mother, it’s hard to imagine that many broiler chickens are six pounds and ready to be butchered by six weeks. How is that possible? What happens to … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Sven a Swedish Flower Chicken
The Swedish Flower Chicken is a landrace chicken that developed in Sweden. Landrace is a breed which has developed over time by adapting to the natural and cultural environment in which it lives. Swedish Flower Chickens are colorful birds. No … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Each Chicken Is Unique
Each chicken is unique. Each chicken has its own face, its own personality. You can see their personality develop as chicks. Among siblings, there are outgoing chicks, quiet ones, curious ones, timid ones. As they grow, their personalities develop and … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Humanely raised chicken
Leave a comment
Learning How to Bathe
Chickens are born knowing how to take dirt baths, but when they get to learn this behavior from their mother, they sure enjoy it.
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Nest at the Top of a Stump
Chickens are always looking for great places to build a nest. Yesterday I heard a white Bresse cackling by the side of a ten foot tall stump. I climbed up to the top and found a nest with eight eggs. … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Chicken, Humanely raised chicken
Leave a comment
Hazel’s Egg
Every hen lays a special egg. To lay wonderful eggs, chickens need good food, plenty of exercise, and a quiet place to sit.
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Chicken, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Never a Dull Moment
With chickens, there is never a dull moment. It’s a sunny, January morning. The hens in the nesting boxes are sounding an alarm. Minutes later, all is calm. Outside, the chickens are enjoying the winter sun. Chickens are constantly on … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens
Tagged Agriculture, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
Dirt Bath in the Sun
On a sunny day, chickens enjoy taking dust and dirt baths. They can really kick up a storm, turning upside down even to work dust and dirt deep into their feathers and onto their skin. They do this to clean … Continue reading
Posted in About My Chickens, Raising Chicks
Tagged Agriculture, Animals, Birds, Humanely raised chicken, Raising chickens
Leave a comment
